Passing time is getting boring

28th of April, Cafe LeBlanc

"I'm home!" shouted Ann as she entered through the door of the cafe.

Shin, who was busy in the kitchen, turned around to face the girl. He was wearing an apron and held a ladle in his right hand.

"Welcome back, darling. Would you like dinner, a bath..." he said.

The black-haired teen leaned over the counter, a hand supporting his head.

"...Or me?"

The girl practically tumbled out of the shop in shock and embarrassment.

"Time out! Time out!"

"What's wrong? Didn't you say you wanted some help in strengthening your heart?"

Ann came up to Shin during a break at school and asked him for help with something. The boy already suspected what her reasons were, and he was right.

"But this- it's- I don't know!" she said, a blush covering her face.

Once she could take a closer look at Shin, she noticed that he was wearing an apron, and seemingly nothing else.

"A-Are you wearing anything at all under that apron?" she asked.

"Oh~? You wanna see?" said Shin with a smirk.

He untied the knot at the back and gripped the lower part of the apron. Ann had covered her eyes in an attempt to not look, but the opening between her fingers made her efforts meaningless.

Shin could see her visibly deflate when he revealed he still had his pants on.

"Oh, don't be disappointed. Next time I'll be fully naked if you want." said the boy.

He put on a T-shirt before going to help the girl off the floor.

"I can see why you're a model now." muttered Ann.

"Yep."

-INTERMISSION-

Shin was in the examination room at the clinic. As usual, Tae handed him a glass with some experimental drug. This time it was yellow.

Shin drank it all at once. The effects seemed to be delayed, despite Tae's words that it'd be immediate.

"Let's see. Eyes are focused. Look this way. One, two, three, four..." she said.

The woman was waving her hand in front of his face.

"Nothing yet, huh?"

At that moment, a pungent taste permeated his mouth. Shin instinctively gripped the lower half of his face with his hand.

"Oh, there it is. The inhibitory effect is just as I had hoped. Your weight was the primary reason it took longer to kick in that expected. We're making great progress, you know? I just need to compile this data and we can move on..."

Suddenly, the phone on the desk rang. Tae picked it up quickly.

"Hello, Takemi Medical Clinic of Internal Medicine. How can I help you?"

The person on the other end said something, but Shin couldn't understand what.

"...An emergency, huh? But we're not a designated hospital... Besides, the head physician here is Tae Takemi. Ah...?"

It seemed the person on the other side ended the call immediately after he heard Tae's name.

"Awfully rude, hanging up on a lady like that."

"Mind sharing what just happened?" asked Shin.

"He basically called the wrong number. An ambulance driver was looking for a transfer location. All the designated hospitals are full. But to think they'd call a general practitioner... Must've been a new paramedic... He seemed to recognize my name, at least." said the woman.

"Does that have anything to do with "The Plague?"

"..."

"I've been blacklisted by the larger medical community due to a... grave medical error I made. I used to work at a university hospital in the city and... I was never actually convicted of anything, but I'm still considered a pariah in the medical industry." Tae had a certain sadness in her eyes.

She looked at Shin, the sadness being covered by a mask of seriousness.

"Doesn't it scare you? Participating in clinical trials run by a doctor like that?"

"If it gets me that medicine, then I don't mind." replied Shin.

"Right, you're just a student preparing for his entrance exams. I guess we're both equally shady, hm?"

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Anyway, I look forward to working with you."

Once again, the phone interrupted their discussion.

"Hello, Dr. Takemi's Clinic of Internal Medicine... Huh? One order of teriyaki chicken?"

She placed the phone back after ending the call.

"You're free to go now. Come again soon, if you're still alive."

-INTERMISSION-

29th of April, Shujin Academy

"So, remind me. Why are we here on a free day?" asked Shin, who was wearing red sport clothes.

"Cuz... Uh. I don't know, man. I just don't know any other good training spot. But never mind that. How are you still not tired?" said Ryuji, holding his knees.

"I guess I just have a lot of stamina." shrugged Shin.

"Dang. Can't believe I was training for the nationals back in the day and now I totally suck balls."

At that moment, a few boys approached.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" said one of them.

Ryuji looked at them and felt shocked.

"Nakaoka... Takeishi..."

"Running, huh? I saw you from the window. You gonna try to come crawling back to the track team?" said a brown-haired teen who was wearing shorts.

"Huh? H-Hell no..." said Ryuji.

"Hmm... Speaking of which, this was your secret training spot, wasn't it? Well, it's our spot now."

"Dick move, dude. Dick move." said Shin.

"And who the hell are you? Wait, aren't you that transfer student? You're really gonna hang around this loser?"

"You better watch out. He'll hit you the second he gets pissed off. I heard his father was the same way. Like father, like son, right? Now that's some scary shit."

Shin stepped forward before Ryuji could respond with anything and said.

"Hey, ex-track team member. You've trained your legs a lot, right? Shame if someone were to break them."

"The heck are you on about?" asked the brown-haired teen, startled.

"Now that I think about it, it would be the first time I break someone's legs. Do go on with your insults. I want to see how they snap." said Shin, all but whispering into Nakaoka's ears.

The brown-haired boy took a step back in fear.

"L-Let's go guys! Th-They ain't worth our time." he said, and walked away as fast as he could without showing he was afraid too much.

After they left, Ryuji turned to face Shin and said.

"...I nearly lost it again when he was talking about my dad... I haven't changed at all... But y'know, you actually helped me calm down. Glad you were here with me, you know?"

The blond swung his hand around.

"Anyway, let's call it a day now."

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This chapter's additional info is on... Zorro!

Zorro (Spanish for "fox" and "sly") is a fictional character created in 1919 by New York–based pulp writer Johnston McCulley. His true name is Don Diego de la Vega or Diego. Zorro is a Californian nobleman of Spanish and Native Californian descent, living in Los Angeles during the era of Mexican rule. He is a masked outlaw who defends commoners and the indigenous people of the land against tyrannical officials and other villains.

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Confidants:

Igor (The Fool) - Rank 2

Morgana (The Magician) - Rank 1

Sojiro Sakura (The Hierophant) - Rank 2

Ann Takamaki (The Lovers) - Rank 3

Ryuji Sakamoto (The Chariot) - Rank 3

Tae Takemi (The Death) - Rank 3

Shiho Suzui (The Hope) - Rank 3